Haldiram's, Vedanta Group to conduct campus drive at Tihar

NEW DELHI: Next time you order 'bhalla papdi chaat' at a Haldiram's joint, your crispy dish may be prepared by a former Tihar prisoner.

Fear not as the popular food chain is among 10 odd companies which will conduct interviews at the jail from tomorrow to hire eligible inmates for different jobs.

"Hundred prisoners have been found eligible for the campus interview. Companies that have agreed to hire include Vedanta Group and Haldiram's," said Tihar Prisons spokesperson Sunil Gupta.

This is also the first time that inmates who are already been released from the prisons and those with life terms but being considered for a release too will sit for the interviews, he said.

This campus placement was introduced to help rehabilitate prisoners after their release.

"We decided to go for the placement drive after we realised that even after reforming prisoners and making them professionally qualified, they do not get a job after their release due to their criminal background," Gupta said.

Three successful campus placements conducted last year led to appointments of 175 Tihar inmates in different industries and positions for salaries ranging between Rs 84,000 and 6,00,000 annually.

Gupta said that after the news of the recruitment drive spread to different parts of the city, many companies approached us expressing their desire to hire our inmates.

"This encouraged us to take the plunge," he said. The first recruitment drive was conducted on February 25 last year.